The library connects us with the insights and knowledge, painfully extracted from Nature, of the greatest minds that ever were, with the best teachers, drawn from the entire planet and from all of our history, to instruct us without tiring, and to inspire us to make our own contribution to the collective knowledge of the human species. Public libraries depend on voluntary contributions. I think the health of our civilization, the depth of our awareness about the underpinnings of our culture and our concern for the future can all be tested by how well we support our libraries.
Carl Sagan said that. Reading is good. Reading is fun. That said, I’ve been trying to read more often. There was a (long) period of time in which the only books I read were assigned by my English teachers — and sadly, I think that’s the path of many high school students. But that’s okay! We can make reading cool again. Consider this: I was on my way home yesterday when I realized I wanted to pick up some reading material. “The nearest book store is a few miles away,” I thought to myself before it hit me: there is a public library only a few blocks down the road. So, I biked to the library, checked out five books, and came home. In less than an hour.
Now consider this: if I bought those five novels at a bookstore, it would’ve cost me more than one hundred dollars, not to mention the pre-consumer impact of tree-cutting, transportation, and the like. Libraries are basically peer-to-peer sharing networks, having being around for two thousand years before the invention of the internet. Like internet piracy, libraries allow us to borrow art, free of charge (unless you are habitually late in taking books back, as I am), with only the promise that you won’t do any damage. I wonder what Metallica would say if their music was in libraries across the country. Granted, in theory only one person can have a book or album at any given time, but you can rest assured that you’ll get it within a month. Is that piracy? Is that “intellectual theft”?
If it is, I say, “Long live piracy! Long live libraries!” This is why libraries are cool; because everyone who walks in might as well be wearing eye patches. They might as well be called libARRRies. I kid.
Happy reading,
Chris
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